CPI edged higher in December, complicating the Fed's upcoming decision on rate cuts
CBSN
Inflation rose 2.9% on an annual basis in December, with the latest Consumer Price Index illustrating the Federal Reserve's challenge in battling stickier-than-expected price increases.
Last month's CPI was forecast to come in at 2.8%, according to economists surveyed by financial data firm FactSet. The Consumer Price Index, a basket of goods and services typically bought by consumers, tracks the change in those prices over time.
The Federal Reserve began cutting rates in September following a flurry of hikes that helped tame inflation after it hit a four-decade high of 9.1% in June 2022. Yet the Fed has struggled with the last leg of its inflation battle in pushing the CPI to a 2% annual rate, and December's reading could convince the central bank to hold off on another rate cut at its next meeting, scheduled for Jan. 29.
Washington — While the Trump administration has highlighted transfers of dangerous criminals and suspected gang members to Guantanamo Bay, it is also sending nonviolent, "low-risk" migrant detainees who lack serious criminal records or any at all, according to two U.S. officials and internal government documents.